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AP EXCLUSIVE: Campbell's wife defends his care

Chris Talbott AP Music Writer

Updated:
06/19/2014 09:44:15 PM EDT

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FILE - In this July 27, 2011 file photo, musician Glen Campbell, left, and his wife, Kim, pose for a portrait in Malibu, Calif. Campbell's wife has issued a statement explaining the decision to place the singer in a long-term care facility and expressing hurt over criticism of the move. Kim Campbell says Thursday, June 19, 2014, in an email to The Associated Press that the 78-year-old's Alzheimer's disease has progressed to the point that he needed access to medical care 24 hours a day. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Glen Campbell's Alzheimer's disease has progressed to the point where he needs full-time professional care, his wife said Thursday, explaining her decision to place the singer in a long-term care facility and responding publicly for the first time to criticism from Campbell's eldest daughter.

In an email to The Associated Press, Kim Campbell wrote that doctors persuaded her earlier this spring to discontinue care at the family's home, drawing criticism from Campbell's daughter Debby.

"It is crushingly sad to see him afflicted with Alzheimer's but indulging those feelings does not help him," Campbell wrote, adding, "I am his wife and no one wants him home more than me but I must do what is in his best interest."

Debby Campbell told Country Weekly magazine last week that she objected to the move and that she and Campbell's eldest children heard about it through news media reports. She also said she did not believe family members in Nashville, where the Country Music Hall of Fame member now lives, were spending enough time with him.

Campbell, 78, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2011. He issued two albums and went on a world tour following the diagnosis. At the time, Kim Campbell said the tour was a way to help her husband combat the brain-ravaging disease and spend time with his family members, including Debby, who made up his band and traveled with him.

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Glen Campbell has eight children, including three with Kim Campbell, his wife of 32 years. She says she spends time with her husband every day and that two of his children who live in Nashville visit weekly. Beyond that, she says she organizes activities for the Grammy Award-winning singer of such hits as "Rhinestone Cowboy" and "Wichita Lineman."

"He has longtime friends here in Nashville who come to play music for him and give him hugs," Kim Campbell said. "He has activities and therapies to stimulate him and help him experience daily moments of success. His life is filled with love and laughter and he is being cared for round the clock by people who specialize in Alzheimer's care and happen to adore him."

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